Gambling on Garak and Gagh
by kissmedarling
Summary: Jadzia Dax must get Garak to get gagh. Not only does she have two bar of latinum riding on her ability to do so - but her pride hangs in the balance was well.


Dislclaimer: I don't own ds9.

**Gambling on Garak and Gagh**

This is a spin-off from my collection of vignettes 'For the Love of Gagh'. You don't need to read that to under stand and enjoy. The section relevant to this fic is reproduce in the prologue.

* * *

_Gagh. Garak had never had it. He'd never intended to. It was Gagh after all, and only a mad person could find it delicious. Unfortunately there were enough mad people abroad Deep Space Nine for the dish to be fairly common._

_Oh course Garak had tried to bite his tongue, to let the gagh eaters go about their merry way. After all it was their right to eat gagh if they so desired, but Garak would never - ever, ever, ever - eat it himself._

_Or so he thought._

_It seemed that - unbeknownst to him - Jadzia Dax and Quark had moved on from tongo and other games into a new sort of entertainment. Gambling on Garak._

_Jadzia had bet Quark he couldn't get Garak to drink root beer. She'd lost two strips of Latinum. Quark, the next day, had bet Jadzia that she couldn't get him to choose a table other than the one her normally sat at. Quark had lost three strips of Latinum._

_But now, the game had gotten harder. With the stakes at two bars of Latinum - and a strict set of rules to prevent cheating - Jadzia Dax had undertaken what many believed to be an impossible task. Getting Garak to eat gagh. Jadzia did enjoy a challenge._

* * *

Spring. Flowers may not have been blossoming up all over deep space nine, but there was love in the air. Garak could feel it. He could also see it, in terms of profit (Quark, Garak mused would be proud. Not that he liked Quark.). You see, every spring everyone came into his shop, looking for clothing that would impresses. Man, women, androgynous creatures, young, old, rich, poor it didn't matter. They were all looking to impress, and Garak had just the way.

Though seeing people in lovely clothing was reward enough, he couldn't help but like the extra latinum.

Garak vaguely wondered what he might buy with it. Perhaps he would play a Cardassian mystery on the holodeck. He could invite Julian. It would be a wonderful outing. His thoughts, however were interrupted by someone entering the shop.

"Hello! Welcome to Garak's - we've. Oh! Hello Jadzia!" Garak smiled, "Looking for something in particular?" he asked. Jadzia was a very good customer. She tended to have lots of latinum from her tongo games with Quark (what did she see in him?), and what better to spend it on than some more clothing? Garak didn't even need to take her measurements anymore. He had them on file.

"Just… looking. I've been thinking I want to get a new dress," she said, feeling a man's shirt that was hanging on a mannequin, "Hm. Is this part Tholian silk?" she asked.

"Yes! Forty percent Tholian silk, Betazoid silk and twenty percent Bajoran silk,"

Jadzia felt the cloth a bit more.

"How much would it be for you to make a shirt out of it? For Worf," she clarified.

Garak thought for a moment.

"19 strips. Perhaps more. I don't know his measurements off hand," Garak said.

"That's a fair price. If I send his measurements to you could you have it ready by tonight?"

"I'd have to add on a few strips for rush creation, but yes."

"Great. I'll send those to you in about a half hour."

"It will be done by 2100," Garak said.

"Garak - you're the best,"

With that Jadzia left the shop and Garak got ready to create a shirt for Worf. He wasn't entirely sure that Worf would enjoy the shirt as much as Jadzia, but honestly that didn't matter.

A little less than a half hour latter Garak received the measurements and set to work, making the shirt. Thankfully it was a slow day, and the few customers he had were only looking. But as Garak always said, today's lookers are tomorrows buyers. Patience was a virtue that Garak prided himself on. Quark - the ferengi - would not be able to operate a business such as this, where profit was not always instantaneous.

After toiling for hours Garak was finally done. And just in time. He'd just put on the last button when Jadzia walked in.

"Oh Garak it's lovely. Thank you so much,"

"Oh it was my pleasure. It turned out very nice. The color will look lovely on him,"

"How much do I owe you?" Jadzia asked, pulling out a bag.

"One bar two strips," Garak told her. It was a more than fair price, and Jadzia handed over the latinum, excited to hold the shirt.

"Thank you," she said once more as she left the shop, a small little grin on her face. Her plan was already in motion. Tomorrow she would go back and invite him to dinner - telling him that the shirt was so lovely she wanted to thank him again. They would go out to the Klingon restaurant.

* * *

Worf, as it turned out, rather liked the shirt. Unfortunately, he could not, as matter of honor, wear it. Very aware of Jadzia's plan Worf felt that wearing a shirt acquired not out of the goodness of one's heart, but out of a desire to win a bet - with that Ferengi no less - was quite dishonorable.

The shirt, however would not go to waste. Jadzia would end up wearing it around their quarters. Worf would wish that he was the one wearing until.

* * *

"Jadzia, I appreciate the offer, but I'm afraid I'm not fond of Klingon food. It upsets my stomach. Perhaps we could get jumja stick instead?"

"That sounds wonderful," Jadzia lied. The pair went off to get the jumja sticks, enjoying a conversation on the promenade. When the jumja sticks were done, Garak left to go back to his shop, leaving Jadzia on the promenade.

"Jadzia!" Rom came running up to her, "Quark wants to talk to you," he said breathlessly before running back to Quark's. Slowly Jadzia got up and headed into the somewhat busy bar.

"Jadzia…" Quark smiled toothily at her. She sat down at the bar, "Bribing Garak? You know that's against the rules…" Like that would have stopped Quark. Nonetheless it was worth a try on Jadzia.

"No, simply two friends having a jumja stick. Unlike you I won't need to succumb to cheating to win," with that Jadzia stood up and left the bar, her mind swimming with ideas.

* * *

"I tell you doctor, it was the strangest thing," Garak said, talking to his friend over lunch, "I was standing in my shop when a man came in dressed as an earth clown - dreadfully frightening. Why one earth to you exposes children to them? Anyway - the clown informed me that I had won a great prize. It was a lifetime supply of Earth Cashmere and that all I had to do was eat a few pieces of gagh. They said it was for the revival of an old earth show - fear fracture, or something like that - in honor of history week on Earth. Naturally I told the man that Earth cashmere was not worth eating gagh for - especially since it could be replicated and that Bajoran cashmere was less expensive and better,"

"How very odd," Dr. Bashir agreed, before taking another lazy bite of his pasta.

* * *

The very next day Julian was in the infirmary when Jadzia entered. She came in fairly often. But this time she wasn't injured - well, not exactly. She spots were red and inflamed. There was a bit of blood on her forehead.

"What happen to you?" Bashir asked, helping he on to a bed.

"Icoberry juice," she said simply, reaching to scratch her spots.

"Jadzia…" Bashir said.

"I know, I know,"

"Why did you drink it?" he asked as he administered the first of two hyposprays to her.

"Well…" she paused, and Julian looked at her, plainly wanting her to go on, "You see, I have a bet with Quark. I have to get Garak to eat gagh. I've been trying and trying to get him but…. Well, nothing I've tried has worked,"

"Was it you who hired the clown?"

"Yes…" she admitted, as the second hypospray was administered, "I even had the Klingon Chef put some into Garak's mouth… but he just spat them out…"

"Jadzia!"

"I know, I know. So I drink some Icoberry juice. It helps me concentrate. Until my spots start itching."

Julian was repairing her skin where she'd scratched it off. He didn't respond for a very long while.

"How much is the bet for?"

"Two bars. I don't care now though - I've already spent more than two bars orchestrating this whole thing. I'm about to resort to bribing Garak,"

Julian's genetically-engineered mind was making connections. After just a moment he responded.

"I will get him to eat gagh for you Jadzia,"

"What?" she asked.

"I will take Garak to the Klingon restaurant and tell him gagh is the greatest thing and that he absolutely much try it."

"And? What do you want in return?"

"Oh, three bars of latinum should do it…."

"Julian Bashir you have yourself a deal."

* * *

Quark looked at Jadzia, trying to figure out how she'd done it. Garak had come in, telling Quark he needed something to wash the taste of Gagh out of his mouth. Garak hadn't even looked at Jadzia. Obviously he didn't know she'd been involved.

"I don't know how you did it," he said, looking at her, "But you did. Here are your two bars,"

"Thanks," she said, standing up and starting to head away. But then, she stopped.

"Hey Quark - how about we do Julian next?"

The pair laughed, each thinking up what they'd get the other to get Julian to do.

* * *

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